Legend of Cypress Grove
by ChristyK
Summary: The Winchesters investigate the legend of a witch's spirit living in a swamp in Georgia
1. Chapter 1

I think this is the last of my old stories that I wrote months ago except for a few I started and never finished. Hope you like it. You guys who have stuck with me through all these stories must be getting sick of them by now, but I love the show and couldn't stop writing them.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

For the last two days Dean and Sam had been staying at a small motel in Georgia recuperating from their last hunt with a particularly nasty spirit. They both had bruises over most of their bodies and were still sore from their encounter with the angry spirit. Sam lay on the bed watching a football game while Dean sat at the small table looking up sites on his computer. He found one of interest to him and read it to himself before looking over at Sam.

"Hey, how'd you like to go on a ghost hunt?"

"I thought we just got back from one." Sam said rubbing his sore ribs as he winced in pain.

Dean smiled as he rubbed his own ribs which were also tender.

"Yeah well this one seems a little different."

Sam slowly rolled his head to the side and looked over at his brother.

"Why?"

"Seems like there's this town not far from here that has a witch hunt every ten years. According to the legend, a deformed girl lived with her family in a marshy area near the town of Cypress Grove a few miles from here. Well, according to this legend the town's people thought the family was a bunch of witches and one night some men from the town snuck out to their house and burned it to the ground. They thought no one was in the house at the time and only wanted to force the family to leave the area. Unfortunately the girl was trapped inside and burned to death, and the legend was born. Supposedly this girl's spirit lures men to it then kills them by tying them to a stake and burning them alive. The town keeps the legend alive by having a ghost hunt every ten years. And on each of the hunts men have disappeared and were never heard from again adding to the legend. According to the site one witness even claims to have heard a man screaming and seeing a red glow off in the distance but was too scared to investigate. …" Dean smiled over at Sam. "Well tomorrow's the last day to sign up for the hunt….What do you think, want to check it out?"

"Dean it's probably just folk lore designed to draw people to the town to spend their money on souvenirs."

"But what if it isn't? What if there really is some kind of witch out there grabbing men and burning them alive in revenge for her death." Dean smiled. "Ahhh come on Sam, I think it sounds interesting and worth checking into."

"You would." Sam said moaning as he sat up. He knew Dean bored easily and was just itching to go on another hunt.

"Well what do you say Sammy boy…Want to go on a witch hunt?"

"I can't talk you out of this?" Sam said hopefully.

"Nope."

Sam took a deep breath; all he really wanted was another day to rest.

"When do we leave?"

**Cypress Grove**

They drove into the small town and soon found the bar that was hosting the hunt. They signed up then sat at the bar listening to a bunch of men discuss the legend. One man sat alone at the far end of the bar drinking shot after shot. He listened as the men that were going on the hunt laughed and joked about it. Finally when he had heard enough he slammed his shot glass down on the counter.

"You're all a bunch of fools!" He shouted.

"Shut up Joe and go back to your booze." One of the men yelled over to him while the others laughed.

"I hope that witch kills all of you." The man mumbled. "You stupid bastards."

Dean looked over at a man sitting near him.

"What's his problem?"

"Oh that's Joe, he's the town loony." The man said laughing. "On the last hunt he and his buddy went out and his buddy didn't come back. Joe swore he saw the witch snatch him right off the ground. Then he claims hours later he heard his friend screaming and could see a red glow way out in the marsh. He said he started walking toward it but was knocked unconscious by some unseen force and when he came to he was lost. They found him a few days later. The cops thought he might actually have something to do with his friend's disappearance but they couldn't prove anything. They finally came to the conclusion that he and his friend faked the whole thing."

"The friend never turned up?"

"Nope….He's probably off laughing somewhere about all the fuss he caused."

Dean looked over at Sam.

"I think we need to have a little talk with Joe."

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Glad you're enjoying it so far. I'm going on vacation tomorrow and won't be able to post the next chapter till I get back on Wednesay.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter two

Later that night after most of the men had left they moved over and sat next to Joe. They bought him a drink which he accepted with a nod of his head.

"We hear you actually saw the witch." Dean said as he took a sip of his beer.

"Yeah, I saw her, but those yahoos don't believe me. All they care about is going out there with their drinking buddies, just a chance to get away from the wives and kids for a few days. It's all just a big joke to them."

"Well we're new in town and we're going out on the hunt tomorrow and we'd really appreciate it if you'd tell us your story before we go out there."

The man looked back and forth between them trying to decide if they were serious or just trying to make a fool out of him. He decided they were serious. The man swallowed another shot of whiskey then began his story.

"Me and my buddy went out with a group ten years ago. We thought it was all a bunch of crap but we thought it would be fun to go, you know, something to tell the grandkids about. Well on the first night we could hear a woman singing off in the distance but no one could tell where it was coming from. But on the third night I woke up and Bill was gone. I figured he just went out to take a leak or something but when he didn't come back I went out looking for him. I found him…he was standing in the woods in some kind of trance or something and this beautiful naked girl was standing in front of him running her hands all over him. I yelled to him but he didn't….or couldn't move. When I yelled to him she turned around and looked at me…" The man ordered another shot and downed it before continuing. "This time though she wasn't pretty…She had open burns all over her body, her face…it was just an oozing mass of burnt flesh. She looked at me and then put her hand on Bill's shoulder and they ….they just disappeared into a mist." The man shook his head sadly and looked down. "Bill was my best friend."

Dean and Sam both glanced at each other.

"What happened next?" Sam asked softly.

"I could hear that damn singing again off in the distance and it was like I was drawn to it. I think I walked for hours trying to find where it was coming from, it seemed so close but …I just couldn't find her. Well…finally I came across an old rundown cabin and I walked up to it and looked in an open window. Bill was in there with her….they were in bed together. She looked like a beautiful woman again…but Bill… he was happily married and never would have gone to bed with another woman. I know he wouldn't have, he loved his wife. It was like she had him under her control. Well the next thing I knew something hit me and I was out. When I came to I …" The man blinked back tears as he relived his memories. "I watched as that bitch walked him out to a pile of wood in the back yard and tied him to a stake. He didn't even try to get away he just followed her and left her tie him up. Then she turned around and looked at me….I couldn't get up, I felt like I had weights on and couldn't move, there was nothing I could do but watch. I screamed at him to wake up but he just stood there looking straight ahead. Then she turned back into that horrible deformed burnt body that I had seen earlier. She looked back at Bill and it was as if he all of a sudden woke up….That's when he started screaming…he just kept screaming and she lit the fire….She burned him alive in front of me. I must have passed out or something because when I woke up. Everything was gone, Bill, the witch, even the house. All that was left was the foundation of the house. I don't know how long I wandered around those woods till they finally found me. I tried to tell them what happened but…no one believed me. They had search parties out here for days looking for Bill but….he was gone."

"They never found any trace of him?" Dean asked.

"Nope."

"How 'bout the house? Did they ever find the foundation?" Sam asked.

"Never found a trace of anything. It was like it never happened." Joe ordered another shot. "Those idiots have been making a fool out of me ever since. I hope they all die out there." He said looking over at the men.

"Well we believe you and we appreciate your telling us what happened." Sam said as he put his hand on the man's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"You know, you two boys seem like nice kids. I really think you should think twice about going out there. It's the hundredth anniversary of the fire, who knows what might happen. And how are you going to feel if one of you goes missing?"

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for the reviews, I'm glad you like it so far.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter three

**Later back at the motel**

"So what do you think?" Sam asked Dean as he sat on the edge of his bed.

"I believe the guy. Or I should say I believe he believes what he saw." Dean said as he paged through their dad's journal.

"So you think there might really be something out there, some kind of witch or something."

"I think it's a possibility. We both know there are more things out there then most people realize."

"So let's say this witch does exist, how do we destroy her?"

"Basically the same as a possession… a crucifix, holy water, salt, and prayers in Latin."

"You and dad ever dealt with one?"

"Yeah, a year after you went to college we came across one down in Louisiana. Zapped that sucker right back to hell." Dean said smiling. "But we're going to have to stick together and not go anywhere by ourselves once we're out there, neither one of us wants to end up as that thing's boy toy."

Sam gave a little smile then turned serious.

"What about the others? How are we going to keep an eye on all of them?"

"All we can do is try Sam, same as always, and just hope we can end this before she comes after one of them. If we can find her house we can salt it and burn it, and hope she goes up with it."

"Yeah but you heard Joe, they don't even believe there is a witch. They think the whole thing is just a big party."

"Well if that thing is out there and this is some kind of anniversary like Joe said, their party could turn into a massacre."

**The next day **

The men who were going on the hunt all met at the bar at seven in the morning. It would be an hour's ride to the marsh then a three hour hike through the deep swamp. The man in charge of the hunt held up his hand to silence the men who were already drinking beer and trying to psyche each other out, he then began his speech. First he introduced himself, his name was Paul Clark and this was the second hunt he was on. The first was when he was a guest, but this time he would be their leader. He told them that the witch's name was Madelyn Burkett and she had been twenty two when she was killed. The legend said that every ten years she would look for men to seduce then kill by burning them alive in revenge for her death. He also warned them about wandering off into the swamp alone.

"We lost two men out there ten years ago, we're assuming they wandered off and became lost. They never turned up. So no one, I repeat no one goes off by themselves. There are alligators and poisonous snakes out there also. I have a snake bite kit with me but the best way to avoid being bit is to make sure you shake out your sleeping bag each night before climbing in it. Most of the snakes won't attack unless they feel threatened, so just keep your eyes open and your wits about you….Okay, let's go find us a witch." The man said to the cheers of the other men.

Dean looked at Sam and shook his head as he watched the men take cases of beer with them. He knew they were going to exhaust themselves carrying the cases for miles into the swamp. Like Joe said, these men all thought they were going to a party. Each man was then given a backpack to help carrying food and supplies into the campsite.

**Later **

They drove in their own cars for approximately an hour then pulled over at the entrance to the swamp. They then grabbed their supplies, locked their cars and began the three hour hike deep into the swamp being careful to stay on the winding narrow paths. Dean and Sam both looked at each other realizing that if something happened to their guide they could spend hours or even days trying to find their way out of the swamp, all the paths were beginning to look the same. By the time they got to the campsite most of the men were exhausted, both from the heat and from carrying the heavy cases of beer. They set up their tents and the majority of the men took a nap. Dean and Sam walked over to Paul who stood looking out into the swamp.

"Is this the campsite you always use?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, we stay out here five days then head back."

"Did you ever see anything?" Sam asked.

"You mean the witch? No, but I did hear her."

"So you heard her singing?"

Sam glanced over at Dean.

"Yeah….well at least I thought I did…it's hard to say.

"The two men who went missing…what happened?"

Paul looked down at the ground and kicked at a stone as if he didn't really want to talk about it but he finally looked up at them.

"Jerry, one of the men who disappeared, said he heard her but at first none of the others did. But then one by one we began to hear her…always off in the distance. The first night we heard her we broke up into groups looking for the source but of course we couldn't find anything. Some of the men thought it was a set up, you know designed to keep the legend alive. But the second night Jerry turned up missing in the morning. No one knew where he went or why. The third night Joe's friend disappeared and he swore he saw him standing outside the campsite with the witch. He also claims he found her house and saw his friend being burned alive. He was missing for a few days but we found him wandering around the swamp incoherent. Never did find any trace of his friend or the house he said he saw." Paul then looked back and forth between Dean and Sam. "Look, I don't know what's going on out here, but the town paid me well to lead this little excursion, that's why I'm doing it. But I suggest that if you hear anything you don't go investigate it alone. Stay with the group and you should be okay, but go out on your own and I'm not responsible for what happens to you." Paul turned and walked back to the campsite.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks again for the reviews, I appreciate each of them.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter four

Dean looked over at Sam.

"You heard him Sam. You hear anything, you get me, you don't go wandering off by yourself."

"The same goes for you."

"I will, but I'm thinking with this psychic thing you have going you might pick up on her first."

"What about the others? There are about twelve other guys…how do we keep an eye on all of them?"

"I don't know, we'll just have to try."

"Well they have two tents; I guess we'll each have to take one."

Dean looked down shaking his head.

"I don't like it. I think we should stick together on this, back each other up like we always do."

"I don't like it either Dean, but the only way we can keep an eye on everyone is if we split up."

Dean knew Sam was right, but he didn't like the idea of not being able to immediately back up his brother if he needed help. Just being apart for a few seconds when on a hunt could mean the difference between life and death and they both knew it.

"Okay." He gave in reluctantly. "We'll each stay in different tents but if anything happens you come and get me, don't try to stop this thing yourself Sam…I mean it. You hear or see anything, or even think you hear or see something, you come get me."

"Dean, I'm a big boy, there are some things I can handle myself you know." Sam gave Dean a little smile. "You don't always have to be looking out for me."

"Just shut up Sammy and do what I say…Joe said this witch seems to put her victim in some kind of trance before killing them so if one of us gets taken we're going to need the other's help to take her down. So I don't want to hear any bullshit about how you can handle this yourself … anything happens you get me."

"Okay, but you do the same. If she starts singing you a love song you yell for me."

"Believe me I will. I don't want to end up being that thing's love toy then have her roast my balls after she's done with me."

Sam smiled.

"Well let's hope we can stop her before it goes that far."

**Later**

They split up and each went into a separate tent. They both put their sleeping bags near the tent flap so that anyone leaving the tent during the night would have to go by them. Now all they could do was wait to see if the witch would try to summon her next victim.

**The next morning**

Nothing had happened during the night. The next morning the group made breakfast then headed out into the swamp to explore the area and see if they could find any remnants of the house. It was more like a big party then a ghost hunting expedition. The men made sure to take plenty of beer with them as they hiked through the swamp. Most of their talk was about their girlfriends and their sexual exploits rather then the purpose of the hunt. But both Sam and Dean knew that most if not all of the men didn't believe in the witch anyway and were only out there to get away from their homes and jobs for a few days and drink. As they were walking back to the camp later that afternoon Sam walked over to Lloyd, a man who was very drunk and was making fun of the witch's legend as he taunted her daring her to show herself.

"Hey you old deformed bitch show yourself! I dare you!" Lloyd yelled out into the swamp.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you." Sam said.

"What?"

"I wouldn't draw attention to myself that way. If there is a witch out there I'd want to keep as low a profile as possible."

"You don't actually believe this bullshit do you?"

"There are more things out there then you or I could even imagine."

"Well I don't believe any of this." Lloyd once more looked into the swamp. "Hey you ugly bitch can you hear me? You don't exist, and if you did, I'd burn you myself." The man took a big swallow of his beer. "You want me bitch? You want me to show you a good time? Then you come and get me."

"Don't…" Sam grabbed the man's arm spilling some of his beer. "Don't taunt her, you'll only anger her."

"You son of a bitch you spilled my beer!" The man grabbed Sam and slammed him hard against a tree.

Dean who had been watching and listening to the conversation started walking over when he saw the man put his hands on his brother but Sam put his hand up stopping him from interfering.

"You don't understand, you never invite a witch to attack you, you're just asking for trouble."

"What the hell do you know about this anyway?" Lloyd grabbed the front of Sam's shirt and leaned in close to his face. "You know kid you're a stupid jerk if you believe any of this bullshit." Dean knew the man was drunk and Sam could take care of himself without his help but he swore if the man made one more move on his brother he'd regret it.

"I'm not the jerk." Sam said simply as he turned his face away from the man's bad breath and at the same time grabbed the man's hand and twisted it slightly freeing himself from the man's grasp.

The man gave a little yelp of pain then attempted to take a swing at Sam's stomach but Sam sidestepped him and he ended up slamming his fist into the tree. He once more gave a yelp of pain then glared at Sam when he heard the other men laughing.

"You stay away from me kid! Do you hear me, stay away from me! I don't want to hear anymore of your bullshit!" The man stormed off shaking his sore hand.

"Just trying to keep you out of trouble buddy." Sam said putting his hands up trying to show the man that he didn't want to fight him but was only trying to warn him.

Paul who had also seen the man push Sam against the tree walked over.

"Look we don't want any trouble out here. You two just stay away from each other for awhile and you…" Paul looked at the man. "I'd go easy on the booze if I were you."

The man walked off mumbling to himself.

Dean walked over to Sam.

"You okay? You hit that tree pretty hard."

"Yeah I'm fine."

"That guys a jerk." Dean said as he watched the man walk away.

"You heard him calling her out Dean, if there is a witch out there that man might have just signed his own death certificate or someone else's."

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

I appreciate the reviews, thanks

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter five

"Well if there is a witch at least we now know who one of her first victim will probably be."

"Witches are pretty unpredictable Sam. Oh I'm sure she'll go after that jerk at some point but we can't let our guard down. She could choose anyone, even you or me."

"Well he's in your tent, maybe I better camp outside tonight just in case you need me."

"No, I'll be okay. If he gets up during the night I'll come get you."

"Well let's just hope this witch thing _is_ only a hoax."

"Yeah, let's hope." Dean said as he looked out into the swamp.

**Later that night**

Sam had drifted off to a restless sleep but awoke to the sound of someone leaving the tent. He quickly jumped up and went outside to find Paul leaning against a tree right outside the tent smoking a cigarette.

"Couldn't sleep?" Sam asked as he stretched.

"Just needed a smoke."

"Oh….It's sure hot tonight." Sam said carrying on a light conversation, he didn't want to leave Paul alone and hoped he'd come back in the tent soon.

"Yeah it sure is. I can't understand why these yahoos want to come out here just to drink when they could stay home or go to an air-conditioned bar."

"Well I guess it's just the lure of something different, the unknown."

"After what happened last time I swore I'd never come out here again. But the town paid me well to lead this trip and I needed the money, so here I am. What brings you here?"

"Well my brother and I were just passing through town when we heard about the ghost hunt and thought it would be fun, you know, something different to do. But honestly we thought these people would take it more seriously, we never thought it was going to turn into a big party."

"Yeah well these guys…" Paul suddenly stopped talking and tilted his head slightly. "You hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"That singing."

"You hear her? You hear the witch?" Sam looked off into the swamp.

"Her voice is beautiful…she can't be a witch….not with a voice like that." Paul started walking toward the swamp as if he was drawn to it.

"Hey, hey I can't let you go in there." Sam said as he grabbed Paul's arm but he shook it off.

"I got to see her….I got to see what she looks like."

"No Paul it's a trick, don't go in there!" Sam tried again to pull Paul back but he once more twisted out of Sam's grasp.

Sam looked over at Dean's tent and knew he couldn't take the chance of going over to it to wake him, by then Paul could disappear into the swamp.

"Dean! Dean wake up!" All he could do was yell over to the tent and hope that Dean heard him as he followed Paul into the swamp.

**Inside Dean's tent**

Dean could swear he heard his brother calling for him but it seemed way off as if in a dream but the urgency in Sam's voice made Dean sit up.

"Sam?" He looked around, but Sam wasn't there. Had it been a dream? He looked over at Lloyd, the drunken man whom Sam had talked to earlier, and he appeared to be sleeping like a baby. Dean got out of his sleeping bag and hurried over to Sam's tent. As he walked he looked around the campsite and didn't notice any signs of a disturbance. Maybe he had just dreamt he had heard his brother calling to him.

But once in Sam's tent Dean's heart skipped a beat, Sam's sleeping bag was empty. He hurried back outside and looked around.

"Sam! Sammy!"

When no one answered Dean ran back into the tent.

"Did any of you see my brother leave the tent?" He shouted waking the men up. Most of them shouted no, angry to have been woken from their sleep. The majority of them then rolled over and attempted to go back to sleep, but a few of them sat up and looked over at Dean.

"What's wrong?" One of them asked.

"I heard my brother calling for me, but I can't find him."

"Paul's gone too." Another man said.

Dean ran back outside.

"Sam! Paul!"

**In the swamp**

"Come on Paul, I got to get you back to the camp."

"No…no…" He continued walking. "I need to see her."

Sam hurried around to the front of Paul and was about to try to knock him out with a punch, it was the only thing he could think of to try and break her hold on him. But just as he was about to swing he was suddenly thrown back against a tree by an unseen force and held there. He then watched helpless as a beautiful naked woman with long black hair materialized in front of Paul. She ran her hands over his body and pulled his head down to her face and began kissing him.

"Get away from him!" Sam shouted as he watched the woman seduce Paul who seemed completely in the woman's control as he responded to her kiss. She then took off Paul's shirt and ran her hands over his chest. "Leave him alone!" Sam watched in horror as the woman turned to look at him. Standing in front of him now, instead of a beautiful woman, stood a bent over deformed woman covered in burnt oozing sores. "Get away from him!" Sam screamed but the woman ignored him and turned back to Paul and took his hand. A second later they both slowly walked into a mist from the swamp and vanished and all Sam could see was the dark mist moving away from him through the swamp. The hold on him was released and he crumpled to the ground. He tried to stand but a sharp pain shot through his head causing him to cry out before collapsing back to the ground.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks for the reviews. To answer some of your private messages, I'm not sure what is going on but I didn't get any e mail confirmations for the last three chapters I posted, so I don't know if alerts are going out or not. I'm not sure if the whole site has been having trouble for the last week or if it's just my account acting up. If anyone is reading this and can let me know if the whole site is screwed up or is it just me I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter six

"Sam! Sammy!" Dean shouted into the swamp. Most of the camp was now up and they too shouted for both Sam and Paul. "We got to find them!" Dean said as he grabbed his flashlight and headed out into the swamp followed by the other men. "We need to split up to cover more territory but stay in groups. No one goes off by themselves. Anyone sees anything yell."

**Later**

Dean was beginning to panic after searching for over an hour with no luck. Where was his brother? Did the witch have him? Had she taken both Sam and Paul?

"Damn it Sammy where are you?" Dean's face was etched with worry as he looked out into the swamp unable to tell which trails had been searched and which hadn't, everything was starting to look the same. "Sam." He said softly as he blinked back tears wondering if he'd ever see his brother again.

"Over here! Over here we found him!"

Dean and the men with him ran toward the man's voice. The man had said found him, not them. Who had they found? Dean prayed it was his brother.

They eventually ran out into a small clearing where a group of men stood around Sam who lay unconscious on the ground, a few of the men knelt next to him.

"Sam!" Dean ran to him and pushed the other men away as he knelt down next to him. "Sammy. Come on buddy you got to wake up for me." He gently patted Sam's face. "Anyone have any water on them?" Dean asked and was handed a bottle of water which he slowly poured over Sam's face. Sam moaned softly then slowly opened his eyes and looked into Dean's relieved ones.

"Sammy?" Dean gave Sam a small smile relieved that he was conscious and didn't appear to be badly injured.

"Dean….Dean she took him…She took Paul…I tried….I tried to stop her but…."

"I know Sam, I know you did. Are you okay? Did she hurt you?" Dean asked as he slowly helped Sam up. He winced in pain and pinched the bridge of his nose trying to stop his headache.

"No…she didn't hurt me, but she pinned me against a tree so I couldn't help him…Then they disappeared and I got this sharp pain in my head and …that's the last thing I remember."

"So what happened to Paul?" Lloyd asked Sam as he stepped toward him.

"She took him." Sam looked out into the swamp at the last place he had seen Paul and the witch.

"What kind of bullshit are you trying to pull boy? First you try to tell me that there really might be a witch out there and now this." Lloyd walked over and picked up Paul's shirt. "What the hell did you do to him?" Lloyd threw down the shirt as he started walking toward Sam. Dean quickly stepped protectively in front of his brother.

"Look my brother didn't do anything to Paul. This witch or whatever it is did."

"You're as crazy as him if you believe that." Lloyd said to Dean then looked at the group of men who stood around watching. "That kid did something to Paul and I say we find out what." Lloyd and a few of the other men started heading toward Sam but Dean stood his ground in front of his brother. Sam put his hand on Dean's shoulder then stepped next to him.

"I didn't hurt Paul, but if we don't find him soon that witch might." Sam said.

"And how do you know that?"

"I don't for sure; I'm just going by what Joe back at the bar said and by what the legend says."

"You know what; I think you're involved in this, I think you're some kind of psycho nut that's what I think." Lloyd looked back and forth between the two brothers. "Who are you guys anyway? I never saw you two in town before." Lloyd looked at the group of men. "Any of you see either of these two before?" A chorus of no s came out of the crowd. "But Paul he was one of us and now he's gone. And I still say this kid did something to him. I say we find out what."

"Yeah where the hell is he?" One man yelled.

"What did you do to him?" Another man spoke up.

The group of men once more began moving toward Sam.

Dean could tell Lloyd was beginning to work these men up into a mob mentality and he knew that would be the last thing they needed.

"Look, my brother didn't do anything to Paul, but we need to find him before something does happen to him."

"He's just trying to protect his brother. I still say the kid did something to Paul and I say we beat it out of him."

The men continued advancing on Sam and Dean pushed his brother to the side and took down the man closest to him with an uppercut to his jaw and soon the fight was on.

Dean and Sam were holding there own in the fight when suddenly the sound of someone screaming in agony caused everyone to stop fighting and look in the direction of the scream.

"What the hell was that?" One of the men said as he looked off into the swamp. Off in the distance the men could see the glow of a fire and could still hear the man screaming.

"That's Paul!" Lloyd said as he and the others looked toward the fire in horror.

"Come on!" Dean yelled as he and Sam led the men toward the fire as the screaming intensified then suddenly stopped.

Dean and Sam were the first to break through into a small clearing, they both recoiled in horror.

"Don't look!" Dean warned the other men but curiosity got the better of them. They all stood looking at the smoldering remains of Paul. He had been tied to a stake on a bonfire of wood and set on fire. His charred skin made him almost unrecognizable; the smell of his burnt flesh overwhelming.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks for the reviews, I appreciate each of them.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter seven

Most of the men turned away from the horrific sight, a few even became sick and emptied their stomach contents onto the ground.

"What the hell is going on?" One of the men asked backing away clearly frightened as some of the men began running back into the swamp.

"Everybody stay calm!" Dean shouted. "We need to stick together or more people are going to die!"

Sam ran over to the edge of the swamp where the men had run.

"You got to listen to my brother! If we stick together we'll get through this! You're only going to get lost out there!" He yelled into the swamp. Hearing him the men stopped running as they realized he was right, they had no idea what direction their camp was even in. Sam walked back over to Dean once he was certain that the men wouldn't take off.

"This is my fault; I should have been able to stop her from taking him." He said sadly looking at Paul's body. "I should have gotten you like we planned but he was already heading into the swamp and I was scared I'd lose him if I went to your tent, all I could do was yell for you…. He's dead because I couldn't stop her by myself."

"Sam there was nothing you could have done, don't go blaming yourself. You did the right thing, you stayed with him."

"Dean….it was like she had some kind of control over him. It seemed like he was in a trance… she had her hands all over him and he just stood there…."

"What did she look like?"

"She was naked with long black hair….she was beautiful Dean, really beautiful. Then she started kissing him and he kissed her back. But then….when I yelled at her to leave him alone she turned and looked at me….She had changed, she looked horrible Dean….she was …burned and deformed but he didn't seem to notice. She grabbed his hand and they just vanished into the swamp."

"Well at least now we know she does exist; now we just have to figure how to take her down."

"The first thing we got to do is get these guys out of here. Dean, they said this is an anniversary of her death. You know what that means. Anniversaries always cause these things to escalate and she could decide to wipe out all of us instead of just picking off a few."

"I know Sam but I think we better wait till tomorrow and get a fresh start, these guys look beat and scared. We got to get them back to camp and regroup, then tomorrow we'll try to get them out of here. I don't want them to be running around these swamps at night."

"What should we do with Paul?"

"He's beyond help and we can't be dragging his body with us through the swamp when we leave. We'll have to leave him."

They both glanced at each other, neither one wanted to leave Paul but they both realized it was the only practical thing to do; they had to concentrate on the living. Dean tapped Sam on the shoulder then nodded to an area behind Paul.

"Do you see what I see?"

Sam looked closely at the area where Dean was looking then nodded.

"It's a foundation of a home. You can barely see it but it's there."

"That must be her house….Let's get these guys back to camp, we'll mark the trail as we leave. Try not to let anyone see what you're doing though; I don't want to be answering a bunch of questions. Maybe tomorrow we can get them heading for home then we can come back here and salt this place and burn it."

**Later **

It took hours to find their way back to camp but finally they made it. Dean gave them a lecture about staying together and only leaving the tent in groups of three or more, never alone. They ignored the glares from some of the men who were still listening to Lloyd blame Paul's death on Sam. Dean knew he had to keep an eye on his brother in case any of the men decided Lloyd was right and that Sam had killed Paul. He knew if that happened the men could turn against Sam and attack or even kill him in retaliation for Paul's death. He knew they were scared, and almost anything could set them off. Dean walked over to his brother.

"You're not the most popular person in camp right now."

"Yeah, I can see that." Sam said looking over at the men.

"You better stick with me, I don't trust them. With Lloyd's big mouth he could turn the whole camp against you."

"That's just great. Now we don't only have to worry about the witch but everyone else too. What are we going to do about the rest of the night? We each need to take a tent; there are too many men to fit in one tent so we're going to have to split up again."

"I don't like it. If those guys decide to gang up on you…."

"I can handle them Dean. We don't have a choice in this."

One of the men walked over to Dean.

"How the hell are we going to get out of here? Paul was the guide; he's the only one who knew the trails."

Dean pulled a compass out of his pocket.

"All we have to do is keep heading west, which should eventually take us out to the road."

"You sure of that?"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

The man seemed convinced and walked back to the others.

"I don't like splitting up Sam but I guess we don't have a choice, we got to keep an eye on both tents. If those guys start ganging up on you, you yell for me, I'll hear you; you don't try to take them on yourself. Its obvious Lloyd doesn't like you and would like nothing better then to turn these men against you. Their scared and they're going to listen to a jerk like Lloyd before us because he's one of them."

"Don't worry about me. You watch your own back… he's in your tent."

"He's not gunning for me Sam. He thinks you made a fool out of him in front of his friends when he missed you and punched that tree. It's you he wants, not me."

**Later**

The night passed by uneventful but at five AM Dean was woken up by the sound of Lloyd heading out of the tent.

"Where are you going?" Dean asked sitting up.

"I got to take a leak."

"Hold on…I'll go with you."

"I'm just taking a leak; I don't need a baby sitter."

"Like I said no one goes off by themselves."

"Who the hell died and left you boss anyway?"

"Just shut up and let's go."

They left the tent and Dean turned his back while Lloyd relieved himself. They were heading back when Lloyd saw Sam leave his tent.

"What's your brother up to now?"

Dean looked over at Sam's tent and could barely make out Sam heading out into the swamp.

"Sam!" He called over to him. When Sam didn't answer him Dean looked at Lloyd. "Go get help!" He told him before he turned and ran after his brother.

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

Once more thanks for the reviews. I'm glad you're enjoying the story.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter eight

"Sam! Sammy!" Dean continued shouting as he followed Sam into the swamp, he could only hope Lloyd would bring help. "Sam!"

Dean finally caught up to Sam and quickly stepped in front of him.

"Sam! Come on Sam snap out of it! Fight her Sam!"

His brother didn't respond only kept staring into the swamp at something only he could see.

"Sam!" Dean grabbed Sam by his shoulders and started shaking him. "Damn it Sammy wake up!"

"Don't you hear her Dean?" Sam asked softly still not looking at his brother.

"Don't listen to her Sam!"

"My God she's beautiful Dean."

Dean turned and looked to where Sam was looking. A beautiful naked woman had materialized and was slowly walking toward Sam.

"Sam it's an illusion! She's not real! Damn it Sammy think!"

When Sam still didn't respond Dean backhanded him across his face snapping his head to the side. For a moment Sam snapped out of his trance and looked at his brother.

"Dean?...What….What's going on? Why did you hit me? " Dean could see the fear in Sam's eyes as he looked at him confused as to why he had hit him and why they were out in the swamp.

"Sam come on, we got to get out of here." Dean grabbed his brother's arm and began pulling him out of the swamp but suddenly he was pulled from Sam and thrown against a tree where he was pinned, unable to move.

"Dean!" Sam started heading toward his brother but suddenly stopped as the witch stepped in front of him. He froze unable to move as the witch began running her hands over his body.

"Leave him alone you bitch!" Dean screamed as he watched the witch seduce his brother.

She ignored Dean as she unbuttoned Sam's shirt then took it off of him and dropped it at his feet. She then began kissing him and running her hands over his naked chest and through his hair. He put his arms around her body and pressed against her as he responded to her kiss.

"Sam! Sam you got to fight her!"

Dean watched in horror as the witch turned back into her true hideous form. But Sam didn't notice as he continued to kiss her. She then took his hand and began to lead him into the swamp.

"No!" Dean shouted as he struggled to free himself, he knew he might never see his brother again. "Sammy!"

Suddenly Lloyd and some of the other men appeared and stood transfixed as the witch and Sam disappeared into a black mist then vanished into the swamp.

"Oh my God she is real!" One of the men said as he stared at the spot where Sam and the witch had vanished.

As soon as the mist disappeared Dean was released from the tree and fell to the ground. Lloyd walked over and helped him up.

"Look, I'm sorry for being suck a jerk. I just thought your brother was trying to make a fool out of me with this witch story. And then when Paul disappeared I thought…."

Dean didn't have time to listen to an apology. He knew he had to get to the witch before she killed his brother

"I need you to get these men out of here." Dean said handing Lloyd the compass. "Just keep heading west."

"What about you?"

"I'm going to get my brother."

"That's suicide that thing will kill you!"

"Not if I destroy it first."

"How are you going to do that?"

"Oh I have my ways…. Now I need you to get these men out of here. Head west and keep walking don't stop for anything."

"You should come with us….Your brother's going to die just like Paul….there's nothing you can do."

"I'm not leaving without him. Now go, get them out of here."

"Listen buddy, you saw what happened to Paul; you don't want to watch your brother go through that."

"He's not going to. I'm getting him back before she hurts him. Now get the hell out of here before she comes back."

Lloyd knew it was useless to argue with him. He gathered the men and headed back toward the camp to get the rest of them. Then using the compass Dean had given them they headed west toward what they hoped was the road and their cars.

Dean ran back to his tent and grabbed his sawed off shotgun, crucifix, and holy water then ran back into the swamp, then following the trail they had marked earlier he headed toward the witch's house.

**Later**

He finally arrived at the small clearing but there was no sign of his brother. Paul's body had been removed from the stake and a new bonfire had been prepared. Dean walked over and stood in front of the foundation of the house. At first he was going to salt and burn it, but if he did what would happen to Sam? He looked around the area as his heart began to pound in his chest. Where was his brother?

"Sammy." He said softly as tears filled his eyes.

Dean was beginning to panic. He had been there for almost an hour with still no sign of Sam or the witch. Had she taken him somewhere else? Was Sam dying right now or already dead? He wiped angrily at tears that welled up in his eyes.

"Where are you bitch!" He shouted into the swamp.

As soon as the words were out of his mouth he heard a noise behind him and spun around just in time to see the house begin to materialize. Once the house was fully formed Dean walked over and looked in the window. He hissed in his breath and his eyes widened when he saw Sam in bed with the witch. The woman looked beautiful but soon began to turn back into her true self.

"Sam! Sammy!" Dean screamed as he pounded on the window.

Sam seemed to come out of his trance for a moment and looked toward the window then down at the witch. His face wrinkled with disgust as he tried to pull away from her. But she reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back down and once more he began to respond to her kisses.

"No!" Dean once more pounded on the window. "Sammy!"

This time the witch looked over at him and hissed in anger, he was immediately thrown violently back away from the window and against a tree. He hit his head hard and tried to fight the darkness that was closing in around him but it was impossible. A feeling of failure crept over him as lost his fight for consciousness.

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

Thanks again for the reviews. This is the last chapter and as usual I hope you're not disappointed with the ending.

**Legend of Cypress Grove**

Chapter nine

**Later **

Dean wasn't sure how long he had been out but he woke up just as the witch was leading Sam out of the house dressed only in his boxers.

"Sammy!" Dean shouted as he struggled to move but it was impossible he was still pinned against the tree his weapons lying useless by his side.

Sam followed her over to the bonfire she had prepared for him then walked up to the stake and stood with his back to it. The witch made a movement with her hand and Sam put his hands behind his back and around the stake. A rope that was lying at the bottom of the stake crawled up on its own till it reached Sam's hands and then tied them tightly behind his back. Sam stood looking straight ahead his eyes slightly closed as if half asleep.

"Sammy!" Dean cried out as the witch began chanting and circling the bonfire. When she was done she held her hand in front of Sam's face and Dean watched as her hand burst into flames. Even with the glow from the fire directly in his face Sam made no attempt to escape.

"Please don't do this!" Dean begged the witch. "Please!"

The witch ignored his pleas and began lowering her hand toward the firewood. Sam watched her oblivious to the agony she soon was going to cause him. Dean tried desperately to free himself, he had to stop her. In a few seconds she would torch the wood and he'd be forced to listen to his brother's agonizing screams as he died.

"Madelyn please! Don't hurt him! I'm begging you, please!" Dean's voice was choked with emotion as tears filled his eyes.

Hearing her name the witch stopped and looked at him tilting her head slightly, Dean realized he had broken through to her.

"Please Madelyn…Look into my brother's heart….he's a good man. He would never have hurt you. In fact he would have done everything possible to stop them from hurting you if he had been there. Please Madelyn don't do this. You got to set him free."

Madelyn turned and looked back at Sam who now had his eyes shut, his head leaning back against the stake. She put her hand on his heart for a few seconds then looked back at Dean.

"You see? He would never have hurt you. You're going to kill a man who would have given his life to protect you from the men who burned your house. Leave him go Madelyn…you don't have to hurt him."

The witch looked back at Sam and Dean could feel the hold on him lessening. All he had to do was get to the salt gun and holy water and he could end this thing. He watched as Madelyn put her hand on the side of Sam's face as if trying to read his mind. Dean felt the force holding him ease up and suddenly he was free. He slowly reached for the salt gun and holy water as he laid the crucifix in front of him. He sort of felt bad for the witch but he knew even if she released Sam she had already killed several men and would continue to do so unless she was stopped. He began chanting prayers in Latin as he slowly stood up and tossed some of the holy water on her.

Madelyn spun around and looked at him her face filled with hate as the holy water left new sores on her body. She once more held her hand up and it burst into flames she then began to lower it toward the wood, if she was going to be destroyed by this man she'd take someone he loved with her.

"Nooooo!" Dean yelled as he picked up the cross and held it in front of him and once more tossed holy water on her. He continued chanting the prayers louder and louder. The witch screamed in agony but managed to touch the dry wood near Sam's feet and Dean watched in horror as the wood slowly began to burn. The smoke from the fire circled around Sam's face causing him to start coughing and slowly come out of his trance. He started to panic and struggled with his ropes as he saw the fire slowly encircling him. He could barely make out Dean behind the flames.

"Dean!" He screamed in horror.

"Sammy!" Dean yelled back as he continued chanting then finally stopped as the witch finally burst into flames and crumbled to the ground in a pile of ashes which blew off into the swamp.

"Dean!" Sam screamed again as he felt the heat from the fire.

"Sammy hold on!" Dean tossed the crucifix and holy water down then jumped through the circle of flames and took out his pocket knife. He quickly cut through Sam's ropes, but the smoke had gotten to Sam and he collapsed in his brother's arms. Dean put Sam's arm around his shoulder and drug him out of the fire.

Once safely away from the fire he lowered Sam to the ground then sat down beside him. After they had both caught their breath Sam looked down at himself and realized he only was wearing singed boxers. He looked over at Dean confused as to what had happened to his clothes.

"You don't want to know Sammy."

"Yeah, yeah I do…What the hell's going on Dean?"

Dean explained to Sam what had happened over the last few hours including him sleeping with the witch.

"I did what!" Sam looked at Dean in disbelief.

"She had control over you Sammy; there was nothing you could do."

"You mean I actually…."

"Yep." Dean gave a little smile, glad that now he could kid his brother about it but at the time it had sickened and terrified him.

"Why didn't you stop me?"

"I couldn't Sam, I tried to but you were all into her…" Dean gave a little laugh. "In more ways then one."

"And you watched?" Sam asked embarrassed that his brother had seen him having sex.

"There was nothing I could do Sam. You wouldn't listen to me… I didn't enjoy watching though." He quickly added.

"What about the others?" Sam quickly changed the subject.

"I sent them out of here. I told them to keep heading west."

They then heard a crackling sound and turned around and watched as the house began to crumble to the ground and disappear; soon only the foundation remained.

"Um…by the way…your pants were in the house." Dean said grinning

"Oh great."

"Hey don't worry we can probably find pants back at the camp."

"So you think she's really gone?"

"Yeah, she's gone." Dean said as he stood up then picked up the gun, crucifix, and holy water.

Sam got up then pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut.

"Damn I wish I could remember what happened?"

"Maybe it's better if you don't Sammy." He patted his brother on the back. "Let's head back, maybe we can still walk out of here today."

As they walked back to the camp Sam was quiet and Dean could tell something was upsetting him.

"You okay?"

Sam nodded but said nothing as he continued walking.

"Hey I can see something's wrong, what is it?"

"It's nothing."

"Sammy talk to me." Dean said stopping.

Sam turned and looked at Dean as he blinked back tears.

"It's just…" He shook his head sadly. "I haven't been with anyone since Jess….and now this. I feel like I've been unfaithful to her."

"Sammy….it wasn't your fault; you had no control over it."

"I should have been able to stop it…..but I can't even remember any of it."

"Maybe that's good that you don't remember it Sam. You need to put this behind you."

"I can't Dean. I loved Jess and I shouldn't have…." Sam turned away unable to finish as he choked on his words.

"You weren't unfaithful Sam. That bitch forced you; actually you could say she raped you." Dean put his hand on Sam's shoulder. "You didn't have a choice….She didn't give you a choice Sam."

"I know…I know but…" Sam knew Dean was right but it still hurt.

"But nothing….you did nothing to feel guilty about. The witch is dead, don't let her still have control over you Sam."

Sam gave a little nod, he knew what Dean had said was true, but he couldn't shake the guilty feeling.

"Come on let's get out of here and find you some pants." Dean said putting his hand on Sam's shoulder as he led him back to the camp. "You know if we can't find you any pants you're going to have a lot of explaining to do if someone sees you in your burnt boxers….Maybe you should have worn those blue ones you have, you know those really cute ones with the little trains all over them." Dean said smiling trying to snap Sam out of his depressed mood.

It worked; Sam looked over at him and gave a small smile.

"Maybe so, but how are _you _going to explain being _with_ a guy dressed only in boxers?"

Dean stopped suddenly realizing Sam was right. What would people think seeing him with a half naked man? He didn't want to think about it, his reputation could be ruined forever.

Sam grinned seeing the look on his brother's face.

"Come on let's get out of here." Sam said patting Dean on his back. "You still have our other compass back at camp don't you?" He asked trying to hide his grin as he walked past Dean who was still trying to figure out how he was going to explain being with a half naked man if they ran into anyone.

Back in the swamp the ashes began to gather together and form into the shape of a body. Though weakened and almost destroyed, the witch still existed. She watched the two brothers walking through the swamp, her swamp, knowing that she was too weak to fight them right now. But one day her strength and power would return and then she would seek them out and destroy them.

The End


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